Pee Dee must continue to add jobs, improve health, education

The same day that Heinz Co. representatives, economic development officials and the governor celebrated a ground breaking for Heinz’s new plant in Florence a major employer in the Pee Dee announced it was shutting down.

Wellman broke the news that it will close its plants in Darlington and Johnsonville.

That means the workers, some 550 in Darlington and about 170 in Johnsonville, will lose their jobs when the plants close in the next two months.

So, on a day that should have been all about celebrating good economic news, some in the community and the workers at those Wellman plants didn’t have much to celebrate.

It shows the challenge we face in the Pee Dee, South Carolina and, for that matter, all over the U.S. to keep creating jobs for our work force.

Last week, the latest unemployment figures showed that rates for the Pee Dee and the state increased for the second straight month, according to figures from the S.C. Employment Security Commission.

And, as usual, there were a number of Pee Dee counties with some of the highest unemployment rates.

Marion County continues to lead the Pee Dee in unemployment with a 0.5 percent increase from July. The county’s rate for August is 15.2 percent, making it No. 2 in the state.

Marlboro County is No. 4. The previous month it was No. 6. Its jobless rate increased 0.8 percent from July, bringing the August rate to 13.3.

Williamsburg County’s August unemployment rate was 11.7 percent, an increase of 0.8 percent. It ranks No. 12.

Dillon County had an 11.4 percent rate for August, up 0.7 percent from July.

Chesterfield County was No. 16. It had an unemployment rate of 10.3 percent.

Its rate was up 0.9 percent from July.

Darlington County’s unemployment rate increased one percent, bringing its rate for August to 9.5 percent. The county is ranked No. 21 out of 46 counties in the state for its unemployment rate.

Florence County had the lowest unemployment rate of the seven Pee Dee counties, with an 8.2 percent rate for August. The county increased 0.7 percent from July and remains at No. 27 in the state.

Of course, these figures came before the Wellman closing was announced.

The good news, of course, is Heinz, Monster.com and others are locating here.

Williamsburg County had a small announcement this week of new jobs.

But the challenge is that we must continue to make sure we improve our educational system and make sure we try and get people trained to be able to compete so that more companies will locate here.